Lessons in Guardianship
by fadingwest24
Summary: Sam learns the hard way that hiding an injury from his big brother can be catastrophic. Hurt!Sam Protective!Dean Big Brother!Dean
1. Chapter 1

**Lessons in Guardianship**

 **Disclaimer: The characters of supernatural don't belong to me (obviously) but it's high time I followed my true calling (see I'm funny too). Anyway, this is my first fic (the last one was a college project). This is not betaed or whatever they call it. I don't even know how this website works so please please be kind and welcome to this fangirl's world! Enough babbling, now on to the story.**

 **Summary: Sam learns the hard way that hiding an injury from his big brother can be catastrophic. Set after 'After School Special'.**

 **CH 1**

"So class, make sure to turn in your papers about 'The outsiders' next Tuesday. Late submission will not be entertained." Mr. Wyatt said as the students groaned about yet another assignment. Although, Sam was happy, he loved reading and had already finished reading the book about eight times. He somewhat understood the bond between the brothers, given his relationship with Dean. Dean was almost like a father to him, given the fact that his actual father was failed to step up to the job.

As Sam gathered his books, he was careful to stick his butterfly knife deeper into his bag. He didn't want a repeat of his first day. Although Barry was his friend now he didn't wasn't to raise any suspicions about himself. That was the first thing their dad had drilled into their minds. He swung his back on his shoulder and started walking out of his class with Barry beside him talking about some artic penguins.

As he was walking down the corridor to his next class, Biology, he noticed a small crowd at the end of the hallway. "Looks like Dirk found another play toy" said Barry as he nervously shifted on his feet and adjusted his glassed. "What is his problem?" said Sam as he made his way through the crowd. He saw Dirk grabbing yet another scrawny kid by his collar while the boy was sobbing hysterically. "Leave him alone, Dirk" Sam yelled as all the heads in the turned towards him. He could hear murmurs among them. Looks like he was the first person around here who had the guts to stand up to Dirk Sam thought. "Winchester" dirk smirked as he let go of the kid and started walking towards sam. "You just don't learn, do you? I'm gonna kick your ass so hard..." dirk said as he raised his fist to hit Sam. "What's going on here?" Mrs. Channing's voice boomed through the corridor as she eyed Sam and Dirk. "Do I need to take you both to the principal's office?" she said as she crossed her arms. The crowd started to dismiss upon her arrival. Dirk gave Sam a final dirty look before he stopped short and looked Sam in the eye. "Looks like your luck saves you every time, Winchester. How about we settle the score once and for all? You, me, in the empty field behind the school at 4 today" said Dirk as he loomed over Sam.

Dirk had few good inches on Sam, but Sam want intimidated. After all, he fights werewolves for Friday nights, a high school bully couldn't be _that_ bad. Can it? Moreover, he needed to prove to Dean that Dirk was no threat and he can take care of himself without worrying Dean. Decision made, he looked Dirk square in the eye. "You got it Dirk. But if I win, you leave every student of Truman High alone. We have a deal?"

"Deal." Said Dirk as he flashed an evil grin. With that, he turned around and left leaving Sam alone in the corridor

At the end of the day, Sam was waiting for his brother at the school gate. He had strict instructions not to leave school without Dean. He was not scared of Dean, even if he left without Dean, at most he would get a lecture, given the fact that his Dad was not around. If he pulled this stunt around his Dad…

Deep in his thoughts he didn't even realize that Dean was out of the school building with his arm around the waist of the girl of the week. Amanda? Or was it Stacy? Catching Sam's eye Dean lost all interest in the girl and kissed her on the cheek as he said his goodbyes.

As Dean was jogging towards him, Sam prepared himself for lying to his brother. He didn't like lying, especially to Dean, but he had no choice. He needed to prove himself. He needed to take of himself. He needed to be normal.

"Hey, kiddo! What's up? How was school?" said Dean flashing one of his warm smiles. Those smiles were only reserved for Sam. He swung his hand around Sam's shoulder and started walking towards the motel when suddenly Sam stopped short.

"I can't go home yet, Dean" said Sam as he tried his best to maintain eye contact with Dean. Lying to his big brother was not easy and if he got caught in the act, he wasn't sure he will be able to face him. At least after he beat Dirk, maybe Dean wouldn't be so mad?

"Why?' asked Dean with a confused look on his face.

"Umm I have a study group thing in the library" said Sam, his voice wavering a little. God. He hated lying to Dean.

"A study group? What do _you_ need a study group for?"

"I just do." When he saw that Dean was unconvinced, he added in a hurry "There's this girl. Lucy. She really needs help with chemistry and I really want to meet her" added Sam in a hushed voice.

"Look at you Sammy boy. You have a crush" said Dean in a singsong voice. When noticing that Sam was too embarrassed to continue the conversation now, he bend down to Sam's level balancing his hands on his knees and said "Aw! It's okay Sammy. Nothing to be ashamed of. I just hate watching you grow up so fast." He sighed. "Okay you can go. Be home by 9. Not even a minute late. Do you understand me? Dean said as he gripped Sam's chin to make sure he was looking at Dean. Sam's safety was Dean's primary concern and he took his big brother job very seriously.

"Yes Dean. I will be back by 9."

"Be careful, okay?" said Dean as he brushed Sam's hair off his forehead. He badly needed a haircut was Sam was strongly opposed to it.

"Are we having a chick flick moment?" said Sam with a naughty grin plastered on his face. Dean gathered his composure quickly and smacked Sam on his head.

"Pshh. No Dude. but listen, the thing about chicks is that they…" said dean as Sam rolled his eyes and ran towards the school building leaving his big brother behind laughing at his innocence.

This is the first and the last time he is lying to Dean, he'll tell him the truth as soon as he reaches home after taking care of Dirk and if Dean decided to punish me, he would accept that too. After all, nothing more could go wrong, right?

To be continued…

 **Please review! I'm here to learn and would love your opinion. Criticism also encouraged!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: The characters or of Supernatural do not belong to me. I'm just another person who Sam and Dean give a reason to live.**

 **Author's note: Thank you so much for your response on the last chapter. I'm thinking that I can do this fanfiction thing. Your reviews motivate me a lot so please, please review! I'm planning to post one chapter a day and this will be a three-four chapter story so I hope you look forward to it. Cheers!**

 **Ch. 2**

Sam waited until he saw the impala pull out of the parking lot and then got out of the school building. The school was deserted by now. The hustle bustle which surrounded the building now resembled the silence of the graveyards. But, the thing about Sam was that he was not scared of graveyards. When children used to play in playgrounds, he was helping his brother and father digging up graves. So yeah, his life was different.

He started walking towards the abandoned field behind the school. It was a beautiful day. The kind of day where you go out on a walk or a date. He wondered if Dean had plans with Amada and he cancelled them to spend the evening with Sam. He was an awesome big brother that way. That only made Sam feel worse for lying to Dean. He had to wrap this up quickly so he can go back to the motel and tell the truth to Dean.

He spotted Dirk sitting on of the cement pipes. He was fondling something in his hands which he put away in his pocket as soon as he saw Sam. "You're late. I almost thought you chickened out." Dirk said with an evil smile on his face. He jumped of the pipe and started walking towards Sam while clenching his hands. Sam took a fighting stance. He was sure he can take on a high school bully but his father taught him to never underestimate his enemy.

Dirk wasted no time and punched Sam, but Sam was ready for it and dodged it easily. Frustrated, Dirk tried to kick him but Sam held his leg and pulled it causing him to fall on the ground. Sam climbed on him and threw a punch to his cheek. Sam decided not to hurt him. He was a civilian after all, he was no monster and Sam was not the kind of boy who went around picking fights with high school boys in abandoned fields. Sam threw an upper hook and then held Dirk by his collar. "Listen Dirk. I don't want to hurt you. Truth to be told, I couldn't care about you less. Just stay away from me and my friends." Sam said as he dismounted Dirk and turned around to leave.

Just as he squatted down to pick up his bag and dust it off, he heard a voice behind him. "Winchester" Dirk said as he took out a knife from his pocket. He didn't plan on using this but he couldn't just let him get away with it. All he knew, Winchester would be bragging about beating Dirk in the school next morning and he couldn't have that. His reputation was the only thing Dirk had left and couldn't lose it too.

Sam only had a second to react before Dirk attacked him with a knife. Given his strong reflexes, managed to roll over before he got stabbed but not before getting a cut on his side. Dirk came at him again but he managed to trip him this time and Dirk fell next to him on the ground.

"What's in God's name is happening here?"

As both the boys turned around they saw a police officer. He must be patrolling the neighbourhood, Sam thought. "Dirk, are you picking fights with school kids again?" he said as he crossed his arms. "Nn-no, Sir. We were just getting some extra practice for our wrestling match." Dirk said as he eyed Sam warningly. "Is that true, son?" asked the officer as he looked over to Sam. "Yes, Sir" Sam replied. "Well, then you better get home. It'll be getting dark soon" he said as he motioned them to get up. Dirk got up and started to leave not before he whispered in Sam's ear, "If you say a word about this to _anyone_ , you're dead meat!"

After Dirk left the field, the police officer asked Sam if he was okay to go home alone. As Sam assured him that he was okay, he was more and more aware of the sharp pain in his side where the knife had cut him. The police officer gave him a final nod and left too.

Sam sat up and looked down to see that a part of his shirt was soaked in his blood. He decided not to check the injury until he got back to the motel. He did not want to panic before it was required. Although, hiding it from Dean was going to be damn difficult. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around his waist to hide the wound. He got up carefully, slid his bag on his shoulder while one had pressing down on the wound to prevent further blood loss and started walking towards the motel.

Sam was praying all the way to the motel that Dean wouldn't be home and he will be able to take care of the wound in peace. _Or should I tell Dean?_ He thought. Going by the pain he was in, the cut seemed pretty bad. He was almost positive that he will need stiches. _Yes. I should tell Dean. But, what if he got angry? Or worse, what if he was ashamed of me because I lost to a human, for crying out loud. No no, I cannot tell Dean. I have to suck it up like a Winchester, like Dad said,_ Sam thought as took out his key out of his pocket to open the door.

The Winchester luck did not fail him. As soon as he entered the room, he saw Dean lounged in front of the TV with his legs crossed on the coffee table. "Hiya Sammy!" he greeted. Right now, Sam wanted nothing more to cry like a baby and run to his big brother to make his pain go away but he knew he couldn't do that. "I really need to use the bathroom" Sam said as he dropped his bag by the door and started walking towards the bathroom at a fast pace, but not fast enough to make his brother suspicious. As soon as he shut the bathroom door behind him, he heard his brother's footsteps.

"Woah! Your date was so good that you need to 'use the bathroom', Sammy?"

Sam could hear the smirk in his voice.

"What? Shut up, Dean. I just need to pee. Will you leave me alone for a minute please?"

Hearing the nervousness in his voice, Dean said "You sure you okay, Sammy? You know you can tell me anything. That's what I am here for? She hurt you?"

"Noooo! I'm fineeee, Dean, okay? Just let me use the bathroom in peace."

"Okay. If you say so. I'm going to order pizza. Also, I need to head out for a bit to buy some parts for the Impala. I'll try to be back soon. Don't wait for me, eat dinner. I hardly doubt that you ate anything after lunch."

"Yes, Dean. You can go."

"Cool! See ya!"

Sam waited until he heard the front door shut and the roar of the Impala and then turned his attention back to this wound. He untied his jacket and gently peeled off his shirt from the wound before taking it off too. _Yup_ , Sam thought, _I'm gonna need stiches. But…I cannot tell Dean about it and I obviously cannot stich it on my own. On second thoughts, maybe wrapping it properly will help. If it does not heal on its own in two-three days, I will tell Dean. Yup. That sounds like a good plan._

Sam dressed the wound to the best of his ability, careful to wash the wound twice to get rid of the dust he might have picked in the field. After sneaking two Tylenol from the medicine cabinet, he gingerly climbed into his bed to rest. He got up fifteen minutes later when the pizza arrived and set it on the table. He glanced at the wall clock. It was late, maybe Dean had to go to the shop in the next town to get the parts. He looked at the pizza that sat on the table. Its smell was making him nauseous. Moreover, Dean was not here to bully him into eating. He climbed under the covers again, turning off the light, wishing that a good night's sleep will take away his pain and he will be as good as new in the morning.

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: The characters of Supernatural don't belong to me. I'm just borrowing them.**

 **Ch. 3**

Dean couldn't believe that it took over three years to get the parts for the Impala. He had to drive all the way to the next town, given the fact that the local shop was closed by the time he got there. Sammy was alone at the motel and God knows if he ate anything or not. Dean was really worried about Sam these days. He knew being the 'new kid' was taking a toll on him and obviously Sam's first reaction to any problem was to stop eating. Dean thought maybe he should have made sure that Sam ate something before he left the motel but apparently his brother's bladder was even smaller than his appetite.

As he pulled into the motel's parking lot, he saw that the lights in their room were off. He glanced at his watch. _Huh_ , he though, _it's not like Sam to sleep so early._ Dean unlocked the door as quietly as he could and cursed as the hinges made a loud creaking sound. Praying that Sam was still asleep, he tiptoed into the room. Looking at the bed farthest from the door, he saw his brother asleep. The moonlight from the window shone upon his face which made him look even younger. A wave of protectiveness took over Dean's heart and he allowed a tender smile to spread across his face which he would've never allowed in the daylight. He looked at the coffee table at the center of the room and saw two pizza boxes sitting there unopened. He sighed. He decided to talk to Sam in the morning deciphering that he looked too peaceful in his sleep and a lecture about eating can wait till morning.

He moved to the bathroom to take care of his nightly routine. He shut the door behind him to prevent the light from entering the room. His insomniac brother could use all the sleep he could get, he thought. He brushed his teeth and washed his face but when he reached for the towel rack, his hand caught empty air. He looked around the bathroom to find any towels lying around when his eyes caught one tucked between the toilet seat and the bath. As he proceeded to pick up the towel from the floor, he found clothes, _Sam's clothes_ , fall on the floor which were rolled inside the towel. _Guess Sam was really tired if he left his clothes lying around. Now who's neat freak. Huh,_ Dean thought as picked up the discarded shirt and the T-shirt off the floor. He was going to throw them in the laundry basket but he spotted some red spots on it and started examining it carefully. "What the hell?" he said "is that _blood_?". He panicked and ran straight to Sam's bed.

"Sammy? Sammy!" he yelled as he untangled his brother from the covers. He palmed his forehead and discovered that he was running a low fever. "Damn it, Sam!" he said, mostly to himself, as he started to pat Sam down for any injuries. Sam moaned slightly as Dean's hand brushed up against his side. Recognition flashed across Dean's face as he gingerly lifted up his nightshirt. He saw a gauze that was turning red by the second and gently took it off until the wound was completely visible to him. Sam came to consciousness slowly as he was agonized by the consistent pain in his side. As he opened his eyes slowly, he saw Dean staring down at his wound with a look of pure anger on his face. Or was it worry? It didn't matter because because as soon as he met his eyes, he felt like peeing his pants or hiding in a hole or peeing his pants in a hole. Although, Sam knew that it was Dean's worry and panic that was coming out as anger. He really shouldn't have lied to Dean. He felt so guilty right now. Dean would probably get in trouble with their father as soon as he came back.

"D-Dean, I can explain. I…I was going to tell you" Sam babbled as he tried to sit up but the sharp pain in his side rendered him unable to do so. "Damn it Sam! Lie still. You even move a muscle right now and I will kick your ass all the way to Sunday" Dean said as he helped Sam to lie back on the bed.

Dean rushed off to the bathroom to get the med kit from under the sink and was back at Sam's bedside in record time. He opened the med kit and started to work. The cut was all angry and red with pus oozing out of the edges. "Dean? I'm really sorry. I know you are mad right now and you can punish me as you seem fit but please let me explain." Sam said pleadingly. Dean completely ignored his little brother. He was too angry to deal with Sam right now. He only wanted to fix the wound and get some meds in Sam. He fetched peroxide to clean out the wound. He flung an arm around Sam to stop him from thrashing as he prepared to pour that stinging liquid over the wound. Sam was a crappy patient and it was very hard to keep him still while treating him. He must have felt the change therefore, he grabbed the sleeve of his big brother's shirt tightly and buried his face in Dean's arm. Dean hardened his heart and poured the peroxide which caused Sam to scream in agony and tears were leaking out of the corners of his eyes.

"Shh. Shh. It's okay. Almost done, kiddo. Just hold on." Dean whispered soothingly.

"Hurts, Dean." Sam said in a broken voice.

"Well you shouldn't go to study groups where people bring knives" Dean said as he eyed Sam. "I'm not an idiot Sam. You may think of me as one and lie to me but I'm not."

"I-I was umm I was just…I'm sorry Dean" Sam said again for which felt like a millionth time.

Dean ignored him again as he prepared a needle and thread to sew the cut. Sam hated stitches. It hurt him a lot and Dean felt like murdering whoever had put Sam into this position.

Sam eyed the needle and thread warily and clutched the comforted. Generally, whenever he went through this, it was his Dad doing the stitching while Dean held him from the back, constantly soothing him and promising him new books if he stayed still. But now, Dean was mad at him and therefore, there was no one to hold him. Sam started sobbing profusely.

"Hey hey, it's okay, Sammy. I'm right here" Dean said as he got up to sit beside Sam's head, on his pillow. "I'm not going anywhere, okay? I know you hate this but I need you to be brave for me. Can you do that for me, Sammy? Just for a little while?" Sam nodded weakly and he wiped his tears with the back of his palm. Dean ran a hand through his hair and cupped his cheek. "I'll be careful. You won't even know when its over." He got up again and started working trying to make the stitches as small as possible so that it wouldn't scar.

"Dean, I swear I was going to tell you the truth. I knew you would never question me over a girl so I…" said Sam with a guilty voice. When he looked at his brother, he realized he was completely concentrating on stitching and was acting as if Sam had said nothing. Well, it seemed like he still wasn't interested in talking unless he was comforting Sam. The brothers sat in silence for the next forty minutes. Dean tied off the last stitch and started cleaning up. He was eyeing Sam in intervals and he still wasn't able to look Dean in the eye. _Good_ , Dean thought. _At least he realizes that he screwed up big time._ _But I need to have a talk with him and I needed to talk him freaking yesterday._ He sighed. He cleaned the room as quickly as he could and offered pain meds to Sam who accepted them gratefully. After taking the glass of water from him and setting it on the table, Dean got into bed with him. Relieved, Sam made a move to go into his arms but Dean backed off which made Sam realize that he was yet in trouble.

"Ah- ah, Sam. Don't even think you're getting out of this. What were you thinking huh? Study group? So now you're lying to me. I never stopped you from doing anything, Sam. Anything. It's because I trust you. But today? I'm very disappointed in you buddy. What were you thinking? You got hurt and God if something would have happened to you, I would've…" Dean said almost close to tears himself. He was still not over the horror show that ran in his head when he saw blood stained clothes of Sam in the bathroom. All he could think was that his brother was lying injured, or worse, dead in his bead right now, while he was standing in the bathroom.

"Dean, I'm so so sorry. I didn't realize that it would turn out to be this bad." Sam sobbed hysterically while he held on to Dean's shirt for dear life.

"What happened, Sam? The truth. Now" Dean said strictly.

Sam began to play with the hem of Dean's shirt as he looked at the third button of Dean's shirt (he still felt guilty enough to not to be able to face Dean) and launched into the truth. "It was Dirk. He challenged me to a fight after school and I thought I could put and end to all of this. I wanted to take care of him myself." Sam said and then added in a hushed voice "and after I got hurt, I guess I was pretty embarrassed of loosing to a human. That's why I didn't come to you. I didn't want you to be ashamed of me."

"Sammy" Dean exasperated. He took his little brother in his arms so he was almost practically in his lap. "Listen to me and listen to me very carefully. I will never, ever be ashamed of you. You make me proud everyday, kiddo. Also, I know you can but you don't need to handle everything on your own, buddy. That's what I am here for. I'm your big brother and it's my job to look after you." Dean said as he ducked his head to look Sam in the eye to make sure that he drove the point across. "And you know what? I absolutely LOVE this job." he added with a wink. Sam, overwhelmed by emotion buried his face in Dean's chest and suddenly everything was fine. The smell of auto shop and Dean's aftershave made him feel safe. Nothing bad can get him as long as he was with his big brother. "Am I still going to be punished?" he asked in a meek voice looking at Dean with his puppy dog eyes through his bangs, hoping to cute his way out of the punishment. "Yes, you are. Quit with that look, Sammy. That's not going to work. You're grounded for the next week and you're not even going to the toilet without telling me." Dean said with a tone that left no room for argument. "Okay. Are you going to tell Dad?" Sam said crossing his fingers beneath the blanket. If his Dad came to know, his punishment would be even worse. "No. I won't. This stays between us." added Dean as he rubbed Sam's back hoping to lull him to sleep. He had a really long day and he desperately needed rest.

Sam settled against Dean as his big brother pulled the blanket over both of them. "And don't you worry about Dirk. We will take care of him. Together." added Dean as he gently kissed Sam's head and buried his nose in his hair. He wouldn't let anyone hurt his brother. "K." Sam replied as his breaths evened out and he fell into a deep slumber.

Tomorrow would be new day for the Winchester brothers. A new day of surviving in Truman High where they only had each other to fall back on. But they would make it together. Like always.

 **THE END**

 **Author's Note: So yeah guys, this was it. My first supernatural fanfiction. I hope I didn't disappoint anyone. I'm not sure if I'm cut out for this so if you like my writing style and would like to read more of my work, PLEASE REVIEW. You can also PM me. I'm always looking for new friends. Tell me how you've like my story or even if you hated it. I'm always open to criticism. Anyway, Always Keep Fighting. Cheers xoxo.**


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